Showmen's Trade Review (Oct-Dec 1941)

NQvember 1, 1941 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW Page 19 Action On Showmanship Front Taking a tip from the barbershop scene in MGM's "Honky Tonk," Manager Jack Simons of Loew's State Theatre, Providence, R. I., promoted an empty storeroom in the downtown district, rigged up an old-time tonsorial parlor with a lady barber in charge. The "barberess" and her chair were planted in the doorway, while the windows were plastered with "hot" copy. For sample, see cut above. For the first time in the history of Atlantic City, the famous resort's boardwalk became a show window for a motion picture recently when city officials permitted signs advertising Warners' "Sergeant York" to be attached to the lampposts. This exploitation stunt was a part of the campaign put on for the first-run engagement of the film at the Warner. Two days in advance of the opening of "Kiss the Boys Goodbye" at the Uptown Theatre, Cleveland, a pretty uniformed girl passed out candy kisses and literature advertising the Paramount comedy. The stunt boosted business, says Julius Lamm. Scores a Touchdown With Football Rally Did someone say the football season is about to begin? Boy, it's on in full force, and showmen are right on the band wagon to make the sport in their community an asset instead of a liability as far as their theatres are concerned. One of the first theatres to tie in with the pigskin pasttime this season is the Regent, Springfield, Ohio, where a Springfield Hi Football Rally was held. "Hank" Harold, advertising director, played up the event in the theatre's regular newspaper ad, urging readers to "meet your coaches, cheer leaders and band . . . Broadcast by Station WIZE . . . Special price to students." On the big night the high school band played in front of the theatre. Then, at 9 p.m., the program was turned over to Station WIZE, which handled it without any help from theatre employes. Each member of the football team was introduced individually ; cheer leaders did their rah-rah-rahs ; the audience stood while the school song was rousingly vocalized en masse. Then for fifteen minutes a travesty on the station's "Man on the Street" program was performed. Day or two later in one of Springfield's leading newspapers appeared a four-column piece of art showing the stage as it appeared at one point during the festivities. Regent executives were well gratified with the success of the rally, planned to stage more this fall with other schools participating. W. Mass. Theatres to Hold Double Anniversary Drive Starting Nov. 9 Plans were laid recently at a meeting of managers of Western Massachusetts Theatres in Springfield for a Double Anniversary Drive to start November 9 honoring Y. Frank Freeman, Paramount vice-president in charge of studio operation, and the 30th year of Paramount. Circuit officials present at the meeting included Nathan E. Goldstein, Samuel Goldstein, Harry Smith, John Glazier, James M. Jerauld, Donald Chambers. The manager of the winning theatre during the nine-week drive will receive a free trip to Hollywood with all expenses paid, and his staff will receive a full week's salary. Fifty per cent of a week's salary for the manager and his staff will go to the theatre placing second in the final tabulation. Nine bank notes of various denominations will be placed in as many envelopes, which will then be sealed. The manager rating highest each week will receive one of the envelopes. Peffley Capitalizes on 'V Angle In Campaign on 'Dive Bomber1 "Dive Bomber" was given the benefit of extensive selling when it played the Kentucky Theatre, Danville, Ky., recently. Richard Peffley, city manager of the Kentucky and State theatres, induced the Mayor to issue a proclamation tieing in the "V for Victory" campaign with the "v" in "Dive Bomber." As a result, a story about the proclamation broke in the local newspaper under this headline : "Victory Week Set in Danville — Mayor Henry Nichols Issues Proclamation." Included in the story, which started on the front page and continued back into the paper, was a dedication of the picture to "Boyle County men who are in the U. S. Navy." Nearly seventeen inches of space was promoted by Peffley in planting the story. A large "circus" herald, plugging the picture and also the Victory Week and Dedication angles, was made up and distributed throughout the community. The cost was gratis, because a furniture store took the reverse side for an ad. There are Bronx Bombers H (this year's victorious Yan WB kees) and there are also Bronx Showmen. One of them tm * \ is Manager Sam Yellen of the DeLuxe Theatre. His ,',f\ eye-catching display on m Warners' "Underground" is ■ shown in the photo at the right. No, the four "ghosts" shown above are not on their way to haunt a house — they've just come back. Exploitationally, the white-robed, ghost-masked men drove an old fashioned automobile around Pittsburgh to ballyhoo Universal's "Hold That Ghost" at the Senator Theatre. With many forms of recreation taking their toll of the nation's movie patrons, Manager Dave Martin of the Granada Theatre, Inglewood, Calif., transplanted a newspaper financial page chart showing actual evidence of movies' leadership to an institutional sign displayed in the lobby.